In Search of 'Mamiwata'

Mamiwata is an African name for a spirit believed to be embodied by the manatee. This blog chronicles my search for the elusive African manatee, and my exploration to understand its biology, habitat and preservation needs, economic and cultural significance. So little is known about this animal, yet it is intensely hunted almost everywhere it exists and may already be gone from much of its previous range. In 2006 I was inspired to go find and study them, starting in Gabon.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Enroute to Mali

image courtesy of whatgives365.files.wordpress.com

Tomorrow morning I'll travel from Senegal to Bamako, Mali to work with manatee colleagues Alfousseini Semega and Abdoulaye Guindo, and see their manatee study sites in the inland Niger River delta. Later in the trip I'll also lead a week long manatee research and conservation training workshop for African colleagues, very similar to the ones I taught in Ghana for the past 2 years. This time many of the trainees will be from Mali, but we'll also have participants from Niger, Ivory Coast and Chad. So it should be a very interesting trip! I'll post more soon....